Universal pipe cleaning tool for vacuum cleaners



Feb. 27, 1962 J. J. OBRIEN 3,022,534

UNIVERSAL PIPE CLEANING TOOL FOR VACUUM CLEANERS 7 Filed Aug. 18, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR JOHN JOSEPH O'BRIEN BY jmo, d jzaw.

ATTORNEY Feb. 27, 1962 J. J. O'BRIEN 3,022,534

UNIVERSAL PIPE CLEANING TOOL FOR VACUUM CLEANERS Filed Aug. 18, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 3

\| llll INVENTOR JOHN JOSEPH O'BRIEN BY z ATTORNEY United States Patent Of 3,022,534 UNIVERSAL PIPE CLEANING TOOL FOR VACUUM CLEANERS John Joseph OBrien, Baltimore, Md., assignor to The Black and Decker Manufacturing Company, Towson, MIL, a corporation of Maryland Filed Aug. 18, 1960, Ser. No. 50,525 4 Claims. (Cl. 15-400) The present invention relates to a universal pipe cleaning tool for a vacuum cleaner, and more particularly, to such a tool that is adapted to clean pipes of varying diameters within a given range.

The overall vacuum cleaner business has a relatively large volume; and a key segment of that business is the expanding field of industrial or heavy duty cleaners, which may be used for example in office buildings, warehouses, hospitals, garages and the like. In such applications, numerous types of peculiar cleaning jobs are customarily encountered; andconsequently, it has been necessary to provide a wide variety of tools so as to facilitate an eificient and proper usage of the industrial vacuum cleaner. One such peculiar cleaning job in particular concerns the cleaning of overhead pipes, and for this purpose a slightlycurved pipe cleaning tool has been developed, resembling a banana in overall shape; hence, the term banana tool is sometimes used in this art. It will be appreciated, of course, that overhead pipes will quite likely vary in their diameter, the range of diameters usually being from 1 to 12 inches. Consequently, competing apparatus of the prior art has resorted to either a series or a complete line of such pipe cleaning tools (usually three in number, for pipe sizes of from 1 to 3 inches, 3-6 inches, and finally, 6-12 inches), which unduly complicates the manufacture and inventory stocking of such tools and hence increases their cost, or else, merely one standard size .of pipe cleaning tool, which thus limits its effective use to a correspondingly narrow range of pipe sizes.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to alleviate these deficiencies by providing a universal pipe cleaning tool for a vacuum cleaner.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a universal pipe cleaning tool capable of cleaning a wide range of pipe sizes.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a universal pipe cleaning tool which is ordinarily adapted to clean pipes in one range of diameters, but which may be converted by a simple modification to clean pipes of another range of diameters.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a universal pipe cleaning tool that may be manufactured quickly and economically.

In accordance with the teachings of the present invention, a universal pipe cleaning tool for a vacuum cleaner (or equivalent source of suction) is provided which has a hollow main body including a curved side having an opening therein; and there is further provided a pair of brushes comprising an outermost brush and an innermost brush, each of which is secured to the main body of the tool and has a respective portion passing through the opening and beyond the curved side of the tool. The innermost brush is nearer to the source of suction, while the outermost brush is spaced along the curved side of the tool beyond the innermost brush, that is to say, farther removed from the source of suction; and preferably but not necessarily, the pair of brushes are spaced end-to-end and are aligned within the opening formed within the curved side of the tool. In such a manner, the tool may be used for cleaning pipes of a given diameter; and means are further provided to easily remove the innermost brush and to completely cover that arcuate portion of the opening through which the innermost brush normally ex- 3,022,534 Patented Feb. 27, 1982 tends, thusallowing the tool to be used for cleaning pipes of a relatively small diameter.

Other objects of the present invention will become apparent from a reading of the foregoing specification taken in conjunction with the enclosed drawing, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a right side elevation of the universal pipe cleaning tool of the present invention, showing both of the brushes in position for cleaning a pipe having a relatively large diameter;

FIGURE 2 is a left side elevation of the universal pipe cleaning tool, showing the innermost brush removed, and further showing part of the housing broken away to illustrate the outermost brush being employed to clean pipes of a relatively small diameter;

FIGURE 3 is a bottom plan view of the toolillustrated in FIGURE 2; a

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the lines 44 of FIGURE 3, and further showing the cover removed from the tool with the phantom lines indicating the cover secured to the tool; and

FIGURE 5 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the lines 55 of FIGURE 2, showing a convenient means for securing the brushes (andthe cover) within the tool.

, With reference to FIGUREI, there is illustrated a universal pipe cleaning tool 19 of the character described, having a hollow main body portion 11, and further having a tubular portion 12 which may be coupled in a conventional manner to a vacuum cleaner hose or extension tube 13 shown in phantom View. The hollow main body portion 11 of thetool 10 includes a curved side 14 having a pair of brushes, consisting of an outermost brush 15 and an innermost brush 16, projecting therethrough and aligned end-to-end for the-efiicient cleaning of a pipe 17 having a relatively-large given diameter.

With reference to FIGURES 2 and 3, it is seen that the hollow main body 11 comprises a pair of parallel side walls 18 and 19 having curved lower edges 29 and 21, respectively, a top wall 22 bridging the side walls 18 and 19, and the aforementioned curved side 14 which is opposite from the top wall 22 and has a central longitudinal opening 23 therein (see FIGURE 3). The brushes 15 and 16 are spaced end-to-end (see FIGURE 1) and are aligned within the opening 23.

' With reference to FIGURES 25, it is seen that means are provided to detachably mount the brushes 15 and 16 within the tool 10; and while the mounting means for: the brushes are shown to be identical, it will of course be appreciated that for the purposes of the present invention, only the innermost brush 16 need be detachably mounted to the tool 10. As shown in the drawings, and in. particular FIGURE 5 thereof, a pair of internal bosses (indicated by the numeral 24) are provided within the tool (preferably but not necessarily, by being formed within the hollow main body 11 along side wall 13); and it will be appreciated that a pair of such internal bosses 24 will be formed for each of the brushes 15 and 16.

As shown in FIGURE 5, each of the bosses 24 has an inward face (indicated generally as at 25) which includes a ridge 26 and an undercut 27, and eagi of the bosses 24 further has an ofiset bore 28 continuing through the ridge 26. A mounting lug 29 is provided for use in conjunction with each of the bosses 24; and the mounting lug 29 has a portion 30 thereof overlying the undercut 27, and further has another portion thereof including a threaded hole 31 aligned with bore 28 of boss 24. Screw 32 passes through side wall 18 and bore 28 in each of the bosses 24 to engage the corresponding threaded hole 31 of the respective mounting lug 29; and in such a manner the base 33 of each of the brushes 15 and 16 may be clamped between the mounting lug 29 and the undercut 27 of boss 24, as shown most clearly in FIGURE 5.

Whenever it is desired to clean pipes of a relativelysmaller diameter (such as pipe 34 shown in FIGURE 2), the innermost brush 16 is removed (as by loosening screws 32); and a suitable cover 35'is applied to the arcuate portion of opening 23 through which the innermost brush 16 a normally extends or protrudes, asisillustrated in FIG- URES 2-4. With particular reference to FJGURES 2 and 3, it will be appreciated that cover 35, hasrsuch a size and shape soas to readily conform to the arcuate portion of the opening 23 which it encloses, with the edges 36 and 37 of cover 35 being flush with the sidewalls 1 8 and 19, respectively, as shown in FIGURE 3. Cover 35 may be made of metal, plastic, or any suitable'material; and as best shown in FIGURE 4, cover 35 has a pair of tabs (indicated as at 38), each of which have a slot 39 formed therein for ultimately securing the cover 35 to the respective bosses 24 in a manner similar to that which was previously described with reference to the brushes and 16. v a

' Hence, it will be appreciated (as shown in FIGURE 7 2) that the innermostbrush 16 may beremoved from the body 11 and the cover 35 inserted and secured in its place such that the tool may now be used in an efiicient manner for the cleaning of a pipe 34 having a rela-, tively-smaller diameter than that of pipe 17 shown in FIGURE 1. Itwillbe further appreciated that the particular degree of curvature of body- 11, that is to say, 9f curved side 14, is a compromise or compound curve 4 V tion may be practiced other than has been specifically described.

Iclaim: V

1. A universal pipe cleaning tool for a vacuum cleaner, comprising, a hollow main body including a pair of parallel side walls and further including ia curved side intermediate said parallel side walls said curved side having an opening therein, a brush secured to said main body and protruding beyond said curved side and through an arcuate portion of said opening, a second brush protruding beyond said curved side through the remaining arcuate portion of said opening, and means to detachably secure said second brush to said main body, whereby pipes of a relatively large diameter maybe cleaned.

2. A universal pipe cleaning tool for a vacuum cleaner, comprising, a hollow main body including a curved side having an opening therein, a brush secured to said main body and protruding beyond said curved side and through an arcuate portion of said opening, and a cover plate detachably secured to said main body and completely covering the remaining arcuate portion of said opening, whereby pipes ofia relatively small diameter may be cleaned. V

3. A universal pipe cleaning tool as defined inclaim 1, wherein said means to detachably secure said second brush a to said main body, comprises, a'pair of respective internal between the corresponding effective curves for separate tools that may be'used for cleaning each of the pipes 17 and 34. In a commercialembodiment of the teachings of the present invention, both of the brushes 15 and 16 would be used (as in FIGURE 1) for cleaning overhead pipes ranging approximately from 6 to 12 inches in di- V ameter; while forpipes ranging approximately 1 to. 6 inches in diameter, the innermost brush 16 would be removed and replaced by cover to allow the outermost brush'15 to perform the cleaning operation, in the manner as depicted in FIGURE 2. Thus, only one tool need bosses formed within said hollow main body alongone of said pair of parallel side walls, each of said pair of respective bosses having an inward face including a ridge and further including an undercut adjacent ,said ridge, each of said pair of respective bosses further having an offset bore continuing through said, ridge, a mounting lug having a main portion thereof overlying said undercut and further having another portion thereof including a threaded hole aligned with said bore in said boss, and a screw passing through-said side wall and said bore in said boss to engage said-threaded hole insaid mounting lug,

' wherebysaid respective brush may be clamped between be provided which will be universal for a fairly wide a 'of respective side edges which are flush with respect to said main body.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,' 1o1,222 McCracken Dec. 7, 1931' 

